My undergraduate GPA was quite terrible, however I am interested in applying to MBA programs in the next year or two.
Current stats:
-720 GMAT
-work in commodities research (natural gas markets)
-strong extra-curricular/volunteer experience.
As such, the primary factor that will weigh me down when it comes time for admissions will be my GPA.
I was wondering if the best way to remedy this issue would be through a "pre-MBA" program such as HBX CORe or similar. Interestingly, HBX core produces a transcript at the end of the program with scores that can be submitted during MBA applications.
Alternatively, I've considered taking a bunch of quantitative classes at a local community college -- in the following subjects: Calculus, Microeconomics, Statistics, Accounting, and Finance / corporate finance -- and getting an A in all of them.
My question is, would either of these strategies contribute towards mitigating the negative impact of my low undergrad GPA in any capacity? And if so, which if the two would be more beneficial?
If not, is there anything else I can do in order to reduce the hit I'm going to inevitably take due to my low GPA?
Thanks.
They're all good ways of doing it. The important part though, is to not be afraid of the GPA. own the problems, but highlight you had other great things to offer too! e.g. GMAT is decent.
Thanks for input, anyone else?
I came from a target undergrad with a sub-3.0 GPA and was accepted to a handful of T10 schools this year. You pretty much have the answer already. Don't try to hide it in interviews, just explain what happened truthfully and make it into something you learned from. Build it as a part of your identity, a part of your story. Your supplemental essay seems like the place to shine in that regard.
You'll want to do something that proves to the admissions committee you can handle the academic course load, because your GPA won't do it. Your GMAT is pretty good, so that along with a quant course or two will help you quite a bit and add to that story when it inevitably comes up.
Congrats on your acceptances, and thank you for the input.
Some great insight here, but I have a few followup questions:
Did you take any quant courses to show that you'd be able to handle the course load yourself?
If not, what did you do to address the issue?
Also, if you don't mind me asking what was your gmat score?
Thanks.
Like I said, there is no-catch all strategy to working though a bad GPA. You really have to look at your story and find the strategy that works for you.
For example (remember n=1 here), my lowest grade was in stats, which happened to coincide with a family emergency. My major GPA was quite high, so I spoke of this grade as an anomaly brought about by the stress from this emergency, and to prove it as an anomaly I retook a stats class (weekend school, it was a breeze) and got an A. With my quant skills proven (ha ha), I then had to prove that my ability to multitask and handle stress improved since undergrad, which I did though a nice little professional story.
What I'm getting at is the number or types of courses you retake are almost less important than what everything says about you. Why did you have a low GPA? Honestly answer that question and the path to make your application stand out will get a little clearer.
As for GMAT, I actually didn't do so hot and got a 640. But I knew that would be counterbalanced because of my fairly unique work experience (through some informal emails/coffees with admissions folks). I wasn't able to retake it because of said work so take getting into a good school at that score with a grain of salt. Actually, take everything I said with a grain of salt since I'm a few beers deep.
Hope that helps and good luck.
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